Suez Canal remains open amid Egypt unrest

Friday, August 16, 2013

The BBC has reported that "concerns are rising that further instability in Egypt could affect the operations of the Suez Canal," but reports say that so far, the canal has remained open. Egypt has declared a month-long state of emergency after more than 200 people were killed recently in violent clashes.
Lebanon's Daily Star newspaper reported today that four supporters of ousted president Mohamed Morsi were killed in clashes with security forces in the Suez Canal city of Ismailiya.
APM Terminals, which operates the Suez Canal Container Terminal in Port Said, said Thursday that operations have "not been affected by the past week's events, and our employees
remain dedicated, delivering stable and efficient service to our
customers."
Spokesman Tom Boyd said the company's heartfelt condolences go out to the families of those who have died in the clashes and added that "we hope for quick recovery of those injured and restoration of security for all Egyptians."
He said authorities have for some weeks closed the Al Salam bridge across the Suez Canal, "which reduces the trucks we handle in our gate as the only negative impact to our business. Our truck traffic is small though, since SCCT is mostly transshipment activities."
On August 9, the Suez Canal Authority said 68 ships crossed the canal with a total load of 4.8 million tons. According to an Associated Press report, Mohab Mamish, the chairman of the authority, said that's the most ever to pass through the canal in a single day since it opened in 1869. - Chris Dupin